10 Ways to Practice Mindfulness Anywhere
Why Practice Mindfulness?
What if I told you that amidst the chaos of deadlines, social media notifications, and the never-ending cycle of "what's for dinner?", there lies a secret weapon, powerful and simple, that could begin the transformation of your daily hustle into a joyful state?
Mindfulness isn’t about achieving a mystical state or levitating two inches off your office chair (though, that would be cool); it’s about grounding yourself in the now, with all its imperfections and beauty. It’s about turning ordinary moments into extraordinary ones, simply by paying attention. Yes, even that moment when your coffee spills – it’s all part of the journey. Here are 10 tips to practice mindfulness anywhere:
Begin your Morning on Purpose.
Take a 1-minute time-out the moment you wake up to set an intention for your day. Resist the urge to hop out of bed or grab your phone. Be present with this day and make a mental note of what you would like your day to be like.
Observe Nature
Just take a moment early in your day to notice the time, temperature, sounds, and sights as you look out a window or step outdoors.
Mindful Moments
Set an alarm on your phone for a mindful moment each hour or two. Just check in with yourself, take a deep breath and notice how you feel. Then spend the next 2 minutes simply paying close attention to anything that you are doing. Try adding 1 minute to this each week and before you know it, you can be truly present for entire tasks instead of thinking ahead to everything else.
Do an Emotional Check-in
Invite all of your emotions in for a cup of tea or a bottle of water or even a few deep breaths. Once per day, maybe during your lunch break, evening commute or your daily shower simply ask yourself how you feel. Then ask yourself what you may need in the area of support. For example, “I am feeling overwhelmed with the amount of work that needs to get done today. I need to make myself a list and give myself permission to get 3 of these things done.” If you finish them then move onto 3 more. If not, finish those tomorrow. We can’t be present with what needs to get done if we are worrying what needs to get done.
S-T-O-P Stress
S. Stop what you are doing and check-in with yourself. Take a deep breath and relax into the moment.
T. Take a few deep breaths here and see if you can notice the breath beginning at the tip of your nose to the tip of your toes. Do this 3 times and allow your breath to travel to every cell purposefully.
O. Observe your experience exactly as it is. If your mind wanders, guide it back to the moment and the breath. Notice your feelings. Notice your posture. How do you feel?
P. Proceed, as the stress response begins to quiet ask yourself, “what is the most important thing to pay attention to right now?” Let this be your answer and proceed with this. This practice takes just one minute and can be used whenever you need a stress tune-up throughout the day.
Notice your Inner Troll
Just bring awareness around to the chatterbox in your head and give it a character. I like to picture mine as a ridiculous, little troll that marches back and forth in my head. I notice it, then I giggle at it, then I choose to be the observer of my thoughts rather than the troll. I sit back and watch the troll without any judgement. I notice it, then giggle at it and say, “very interesting, now I will get back to the present moment.”
Do a Simple Task
Wash the car, empty the dishwasher, fold the laundry or prepare dinner while focusing on the task at hand. Notice the water temp, all the smells, the sounds, the colors, the bubbles, the tools, the way things feel in your hand. Pretend, for a moment, that it’s the first time ever doing this task and just notice the experience.
Go for a Mindful Walk
15 minutes of intentional walking, listening and looking. Notice the sounds of the leaves, birds, wind, children, cars. Notice the sights of people, animals, nature, your favorite places. Breathe it all in. Experience the walk as if you are doing it for the first time, every single time.
Practice Gratitude
For one minute, list mentally or write in a journal all the things that you are grateful for about this day, moment, life, job, week, world, self. One minute can bring about radical change.
Fall Asleep Purposefully
Shut down electronics and turn off TV’s at least 30 minutes before bed. Relax into your body, notice every body part from head to toe. Listen to white noise, like the sound of rain, if this helps you to relax. If you find this very difficult, you may use your phone for the simple purpose of a mindfulness meditation or sleep meditation or even nature sounds. Use earbuds and keep the phone on your night stand, if possible.
The Journey to Joy Membership Portal
Looking for more tools like this to assist you on your journey of self-discovery? The Journey to Joy membership is jam-packed with short messages and exercises just like these (including some of the most powerful tools that I use with my 1:1 clients!) delivered monthly in your membership portal. “Joy Starts Here” is designed to be easy to follow, fun, soul-enriching, educational and supportive. The modalities provided are all backed by neuroscience and the science behind happiness, healing, joy and emotional wellness.
